When last we left the young Jedi, Ahsoka had been kidnapped by the pirate Hondo, leaving the younglings to head back to Coruscant and drum up a rescue party. But when damage to their ship and an intervening battle leaves the younglings on their own, they come up with a plan to rescue Ahsoka themselves, a plan that involves joining the space circus.

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Being responsible kiddos, the young Jedi phone home (or rather, hail a Republic fleet). They're all a-tizzy when they get Obi-Wan on the holographic line, and he orders them to stay put while he mounts a rescue mission. The kids insist that they've already proven themselves against the pirates, but Obi-Wan isn't having any of it. So the kids while away their time building their lightsabers. I know I made fun of the Hogwarts-style lightsaber customization last week, but I have to admit, Gungi's wooden lightsaber is kind of awesome. When the rescue party doesn't show, Petro tries to convince the others to try to rescue Ahsoka. Katooni is against the plan, but when Zatt and Ganodi tell them the engines are overheating, they all agree to land on Florrum and try the rescue mission.

Over on Hondo's ship, the pirates are drinking to their victory. Ahsoka demands that Hondo let her go, telling him that he can't trust the Separatists if he hands her over to them. On that point, Hondo agrees. He's had tense relations with the Separatists ever since he kidnapped Count Dooku. (Then why are you kidnapping a Jedi?) Instead, he intends to sell her to another criminal, one who will pay a high price for a Jedi—especially a female one. Then, as a threat, he tells her that the buyer doesn't care if she arrives dead or alive. Ew. What kind of buyer wants a dead female Jedi?

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Hondo would have gotten away with it if not for those meddling kids.

Obi-Wan and Commander Cody have been waylaid by an attack by General Grievous, meaning that the younglings are Ahsoka's only hope. Petro the Petulant actually manages to show some budding leadership skills here. He tells Ganodi to stay aboard the ship, and when she balks, he reminds her that she's the only one of them with flight training. When they encounter a traveling circus, Petro convinces the owner to take them on by claiming that the young Jedi are a crew of stranded acrobats. It's nice to see Petro becoming more thoughtful, cleverer, while still being quick on his feet. Now can Katooni start to show a little more backbone?

Conveniently, the circus is about to give a private performance for the pirates, who are all stinking drunk at this point. Hondo doesn't recognize the Jedi kids in their masks, and they manage to convince him to stand on a catapulting board, sending him flying through the air and distracting the pirates while Katooni frees Ahsoka. A battle ensues between the Jedi and the pirates why the circus troupe hurriedly flees. Ahsoka and the younglings get away, but Hondo isn't left completely empty-handed. In their haste, the circus folk left behind their giant lizard, who has taken a shine to Hondo.

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On the ship, the younglings apologize to Ahsoka for disobeying orders, and she sighs that her master taught her that sometimes it's better to bend the rules. I realize that Star Wars is firmly committed to its canon, but I'd love to see an alternate history where, instead of falling to the Dark Side, Anakin becomes a major player on the Jedi Council and influences a generation of impulsive young Jedi. If they keep hanging around Ahsoka, these younglings may not come away with a huge respect for rules, but they'll certainly have spark.